The global tourism sector is expected to fully recover to pre-pandemic levels by the end of the year, according to the latest World Tourism Barometer by UN Tourism.

Global tourism recovered to 98% of pre-pandemic levels during the first nine months of the year, with 1.1bn tourist travelling internationally between January and September.

Most regions exceeded 2019 arrival numbers during the first three quarters of the year, and most destinations with available data posted double-digit growth as compared to five years ago.

“The strong growth seen in tourism receipts is excellent news for economies around the world," said Zurab Pololikashvili, UN Tourism secretary-general.

"The fact that visitor spending is growing even stronger than arrivals has a direct impact on millions of jobs and small businesses and contributes decisively to the balance of payments and tax revenues of many economies.”

The Middle East enjoyed record growth during the nine-month period, with tourist arrivals up 29% on 2019 while Europe (+1%) and Africa (+6%) also exceeded pre-pandemic levels.

The Americas have recovered to 97% of 2019 arrivals while Asia and the Pacific reached 85% of 2019 levels compared to 66% last year.

Asia and the Pacific has experienced a gradual though uneven rebound in arrivals since the region reopened to international travel in 2023.

The summer season in the Northern Hemisphere was generally strong, with arrivals worldwide reaching 99% of pre-pandemic values in Q3 2024.

A total of 60 out of 111 destinations surpassed 2019 arrival numbers in the first eight to nine months of 2024.

Some of the strongest performers in arrivals during this period were Qatar (+141% vs 2019) where arrivals more than doubled, Albania (+77%), Saudi Arabia (+61%), Curaçao (+48%), Tanzania (+43%), Colombia and Andorra (both +36%).

In all, 35 out of 43 countries with available data on receipts exceeded pre-pandemic values in the first eight to nine months of 2024.

Among the best performers in terms of earnings were Serbia (+99%) where receipts more than doubled (compared to the same months of 2019), as well as Pakistan (+64%), Romania (+61%), Japan (+59%), Portugal (+51%), Nicaragua and Tanzania (both 50%).

Among the world’s top earners, Japan (+59%), Türkiye (+41%) and France (+27%) all recorded double-digit growth through September 2024.

Spain (+36%) and Italy (+26%) also reported strong visitor receipts, through August. The UK recorded 43% higher earnings, Canada 35%, and Australia 18%, all through to June 2024.

As for the United States, the world’s top tourism earner, it reported 7% growth through September.

Data on international tourism expenditure reflects the same trend, especially among large source markets such as Germany (+35% compared to 2019), the US (+33%) and France (+11%).

Strong expenditure growth was also reported by the UK (+46%) Australia (+34%), Canada (+28%) and Italy (+26%), all from January to June 2024.

Available data for India shows a surge in outbound spending from this increasingly important market, with 81% growth for the first six months of the year compared with the same period in 2019.

Visitor numbers have been slower to rebound in parts of north-east Asia and central eastern Europe as compared to strong results in all other European subregions, the Middle East, Central America and the Caribbean, where arrivals have surpassed pre-pandemic values.

 2024 has seen strong export revenues from international tourism, due to higher average spending per trip, excluding the effects of inflation, partly the result of longer periods of stay.

UN Tourism said the sector is still facing inflation in the cost of transport and accommodation as well as volatile oil prices.

"Major conflicts and tensions around the world continue to impact consumer confidence, while extreme weather events and staff shortages are also critical challenges for tourism performance," the organisation concluded.

(Pic: PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)